Shit We've Read

Happy New Year! It’s the first episode of 2023 and guest co-host Megan Wilson returns to join Jason and Bella for a discussion of The Shadow in the Glass , a “ terrifying new spin on Cinderella ” by JJA Harwood. Listen in as we debate if it’s accurate to call this story a retelling of Cinderella , Megan shows us where to find hope within this book, and Bella asks a question that makes Jason rethin...

Join us as we close out 2022 and welcome new guest host Amy K. with a discussion of Xiran Jay Zhao's debut novel, Iron Widow ; a feminist sci-fi story inspired by the rise of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history. Listen in as we question why the two top shelves on Goodreads for this book are 'fantasy' and 'young adult', we discuss whether or not the book’s commentary on gender rol...

It’s Emma’s book choice and with it comes her first official hosting duties! All four SWR After Dark hosts come together for a discussion of Her Soul to Take by Harley Laroux, book one of the Souls Trilogy . It’s a book Emma has previously read and she asked the rest of us to read it too, so listen in as we decide whether we agree with Emma’s opinion, we debate the balance of plot vs. sex scenes,...

This month we are joined by returning guest host Jessilee Windhaus for a discussion of Blood Like Magic by Liselle Sambury; “ an urban fantasy debut following a teen witch who is given a horrifying task: sacrificing her first love to save her family’s magic. The problem is, she’s never been in love—she’ll have to find the perfect guy before she can kill him.” Listen in as we compare this book to t...

October is for vampires and spooky books, so this month we are joined by returning guest host Z LaFrance as well as first-time guest host Megan Wilson for a discussion about In Every Generation by Kendare Blake ; “the first in an all-new series [continuing] the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer featuring the next generation of Scoobies and Slayers who must defeat a powerful new evil.” Listen in as...

It’s a discussion of gigantic proportions as we’re joined once again by Sir Aaron Carter, host and co-creator of the Before You Log Off podcast, to talk about The Kaiju Preservation Societ y by John Scalzi ; “ a thrilling, fast-paced adventure set on an alternate Earth [about an] ‘animal rights organization’ that is way more than it appears.” Listen in as we debate whether or not we’d try the book...

This month, we discuss Sunyi Dean's debut contemporary fantasy The Book Eaters , "a story of motherhood, sacrifice, and hope; of queer identity and learning to accept who you are; of gilded lies and the danger of believing the narratives others create for you.” Joining us once again is Sacramento multimedia artist Sarah Marie Hawkins. Listen in as we talk about Dean's creation of a new creature wi...

We are so excited to be joined once again, for this and all future SWR After Dark episodes, by ongoing After Dark co-host EmmaSkies. In this episode, Emma sits down with Jason and Bella for a spicy discussion of the monster romance Stalked by the Kraken, book one of the Monstrous Matches series by Lillian Lark. Listen in as we discuss the trifecta of Emma’s least favorite smutty tropes, we talk ab...

In this episode, Jason and Bella venture into another Silvia Moreno-Garcia novel, this time discussing her latest release, The Daughter of Doctor Moreau —"a dreamy reimagining of The Island of Doctor Moreau set against the backdrop of nineteenth-century Mexico." Listen in as we discuss the book’s commentary on race, colorism, and Western beauty standards, Bella ponders the age-old question, “Is th...

It’s Pride Month and we’re celebrating by doing what we do best—reading a queer, YA novel featuring a custom VW van, a road trip across California, and a mystical adventure about a mysterious tarot deck. Joining us for this month’s discussion of Zachary Sergi’s Major Detours is Jessilee Windhaus, cofounder of local performing arts nonprofit, Empire Arts Collective. Listen in as we choose our own p...

On this premiere episode of SWR After Dark , guest-host Emma Skies returns for a spicy discussion of the dark romance Desperate Measures by Katee Robert–the first novel in the Wicked Villains series. Listen in as we debate who's to blame for this episode, Jason explains how he once read an erotic series by accident, and Emma questions the logistics of how the main characters' sex scenes are happen...

We are absolutely thrilled to be joined by award-winning author Heather Walter to discuss her new novel Misrule . Listen as Walter chats with Jason, Bella, and EmmaSkies about the importance of normalizing queerness, we learn her process for going from an idea in the Notes app on her phone to a complete published novel, hear her theory on why we’re still so obsessed with fairy tales, and remind ch...

We’re excited to be back for SEASON TWO of Shit We’ve Read with a special May the 4th/Star Wars Day premiere episode discussing Star Wars: Light of the Jedi , by Charles Soule, the first novel in the High Republic sub-era of the Star Wars universe. Laura, Jason, and new co-host Bella talk about how The High Republic series connects to Star Wars canon, what hyperspace is, reading vs listening to au...

We have a new co-host! Friend of the show, Bella Romero is joining us full-time and we couldn’t be more excited. If you’re a listener of the show, there’s a good chance you’ve already gotten to know them a bit, but we sat down with them to learn more about their favorite genres, what they do when not reading, and how Bella & Jason first became frenemies. Have a listen and then we’ll see you ag...

We’re closing out Season One of Shit We’ve Read with a discussion of Ashia Monet’s self-published debut novel, The Black Veins . Listen in as we describe this book as ‘X-Men with magic’, admit we’re both too dumb for hard science fiction, and Laura reveals why she would never try to write a book. As a reminder, this is our last episode of Season One after which we will be taking a short hiatus to...

This month, Jason is joined by new guest host Z LaFrance as well as a returning Bella Romero to discuss Ninth House , “the mesmerizing adult debut from Leigh Bardugo” about “power, privilege, dark magic, and murder set among the Ivy League elite.” Listen in as Jason finds out he may already be part of a cult, Z creates two brand new SWR segments— Which Character in This Book Would Be a Vampire? an...

In this month’s Shit We’ve Read  we celebrate National Science Fiction Day (a few days late) by discussing The Space Between Worlds , Micaiah Johnson’s debut scifi multiverse novel. Joining us is special guest host Sir Aaron Carter, host and co-creator of the Before You Log Off podcast and BYLO Network! Listen in as we chat about getting into Webtoon reading, the pros and cons of balancing science...

This month’s Shit We’ve Read is all about Gearbreakers , Zoe Hana Mikuta’s debut young adult novel about two girls on opposite sides of a war fighting for the same cause. Joining us is Sarah Marie Hawkins, an amazing multimedia artist and book nerd. Listen in as we discuss wanting to know more about the Windups (mechas), needing a villain to hate, and how we always unintentionally age-up all the c...

This month on Shit We’ve Read , guest-host Emma Skies returns for a spooky discussion of A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson, a lyrical retelling of Dracula’s brides. Listen in as Emma laments the early cancellation of NBC’s Dracula series, we discuss how a character doesn’t need to be a Monster to be a monster, and we give first confirmation of a potential SWR After Dark spin-off series.

Shit We’ve Read is back for the conclusion of our two-part minisode discussion of The Plot, a horror fantasy comic book written by Tim Daniel and Michael Moreci with art by Joshua Hixson. In this episode, we cover The Plot: Part Two and witness Laura making an air horn sound for the first time in her life, we speak out against girls dating swamp boyfriends, and Jason discovers a deeper meaning beh...

In this month’s Shit We’ve Read , Bella Romero joins us again to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with a discussion of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic , a Latinx gothic horror about a fabulous debutante trying to save her cousin from a mysterious house in the Mexican countryside. Listen in as Bella angers both Star Trek and Star Wars fans, we try to figure out what “first cousin, once remov...

Surprise! Shit We’ve Read finally got together to discuss a graphic novel! To start celebrating the spooky season, we read The Plot: Part One , a horror fantasy by Tim Daniel and Michael Moreci with art by Joshua Hixson. Listen in as we talk about sassy teenagers, cockblocking houses, and predict what will happen in Part Two . If you enjoy this graphic novel and our discussion on it, be sure to ca...

Shit We’ve Read is back from our short hiatus! This month we discuss Piranesi , by Susanna Clarke, a lyrical tale of a man who lives in a house with infinite rooms and a labyrinth of halls. We talk about the ego, the super-ego, and the id, draw parallels to quarantine, and scold Jason for, again, not watching another well-known movie.

Hey, friends! You were probably expecting a new episode today, but sometimes life, uh, gets in the way. As such, we’re taking a short, one month hiatus from regular episodes, but will be back with a new one in September. Follow us on social media @shitweveread for books, updates, and a GIVEAWAY! Yay! Details are coming soon so keep your eyes on our social feeds! In the meantime, here’s more of gue...

In this month’s episode of Shit We’ve Read , we talk about The Lost Apothecary, the debut novel by Sarah Penner. Joining us this time is our friend Bella Romero, a fellow book nerd and legislative advocate. Though a little longer than usual, we had a lot of fun discussing our literary pet peeves, women’s autonomy throughout history, and debating the merits of our incorrect theories. We also decide...